It's a dog day. "The Stray" verses "Red Dog: True Blue"

 I wasn't planning on doing another verses so soon, but when I saw these two dog movies at the box this past week, I knew I'd have to watch them both and see who came out as top dog.

Let's start off with "The Stray". This movie is based off of an event that occurred that is directed and written by the real life Mitch Davis who is portrayed in the story (Parker Davis also co-wrote the story).
The movie starts off showing a man with three boys and a dog out hiking in the wild and setting up a tent to wait out a storm when a bolt of lightning strikes the tent.
Flashing back to 1990, we are introduced to the Davis family. Mitch Davis (Michael Cassidy) a screenwriter in California is hardworking, but a distant family man which takes its strains on his wife Michelle (Sarah Lancaster) and their three children's relationships. That's when Christian (Connor Corum) their 9 year old son brings home a stray dog who defended him from some bullies and an instant bond takes hold. Naming him Pluto, he becomes not only a companion to Christian, but a guardian to the whole Davis family as he brings them closer together.

Next to show is Red Dog: True Blue. A sequel to Red Dog, this tells of another story about this loveable loyal dog.
Telling the story from when he was 11 to his eldest son Michal Carter (Jason Issacs) recalls of how he was sent to live on his Grandfather's (Bryan Brown) farm in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. After a cyclone, he finds a muddy puppy that looked blue from the mud but after a bath discovered his bright red coat. Mick (Levi Miller) as he is called in his youth becomes inseparable with Blue as their adventures together find myth, friendship and lessons of life that changes his life.

This was a difficult choice to make. They both have loveable dogs and moments that made you laugh and brought tears to your eyes. The boys chosen to play the human companions for both dogs showed a great range of emotion when faced with hardship and heartbreak and the filming done while basic captured the story the way it needed to play out to bring you in and make you lean in at just the right moments. Yet there can only be one winner.

Red Dog: True Blue gave a great delivery of drama and heart-warming moments that took you on a roller coaster of emotions as the father told his story, but there were points that were hard to follow and some of the other characters didn't get much of a story even though it was made a point to make them seem strange and interesting to Mick. It's a good family movie, but I would only rate it three G.M.Stars.

⭐⭐⭐

"The Stray" on the other paw has just as much suspense and more heart-warming moments to offer and is a powerful piece on the topics of faith, belief and prayer for those who have strong beliefs. The story plays out as if you are observing life as its playing out in a series of events rather than being drawn out with dialogue and scenes that do nothing for the story. It's perfect for the family, especially those who are religious and one that deserves four G.M.Stars.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

While "The Stray" won best in show, "Red Dog: True Blue" is an underdog not to be counted out. Feel free to judge for yourself and let me know. Hit the follow button to be the first to know about the next post and I hope you'll share.